This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Driver circuits for LED(s) typically operate in voltage regulation mode when the output is open-circuited, such as when the LED(s) are disconnected from the output for replacement. This open circuit voltage is usually greater than the voltage level at the output when LED(s) are connected. Therefore, capacitors coupled to the output may be charged to a higher voltage level during the open circuit condition, and may subsequently deliver excess energy in an uncontrolled manner to any LED(s) connected to the output while the driver circuit is energized, potentially damaging the LED(s). For this reason, some known driver circuits use a linear switch in series with the output to control the output current upon hot insertion of the LED(s). Other known driver circuits attempt to regulate the open circuit output voltage at a level that is very close the voltage level at the output when LED(s) are connected.